Railway-crossing.



No. 806,761 PATENTED DEC. 12, 1905. C. A. ALDEN.

RAILWAY CROSSING.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 20. 1905.

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N0- 806,7 61. PATENTED DEC. 12, 1905.

U. A. ALDEN.

RAILWAY CROSSING.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 20. 1905.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES A. ALDEN, OF STEELTON, PENNSYLVANIA STEEL COMPANY,

PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA,

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented IDec. 12, 1905.

Application filed May 20, 1905. Serial No. 261,425.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES A. ALDEN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Steelton, in the county of Dauphin and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Railway-Crossings, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, of which- Figure l is a plan view. Fig. 2 is a section on line a: m, Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a section, broken off, similar to Fig. 2, but showing the parts in position preparatory to securing the same together, the nut being shown in the recess in the base of the structure. Fig. 4 is a section on line y 3 Fig. 2.

This invention relates to railroad-crossings,

frogs, or similar structures in which the hardmetal wear-plate intended to be renewable is made separate from its supporting-base, and is removably secured to the latter.

The object of the invention is to provide such a frog or the like in which the wear-plate is fastened to the base in such manner and by such means that while the wear-plate may be readily detached from said base it shall be firmly secured thereto without liability of fracture of any of the parts or loosening or displacement of the wear-plate.

The precise nature of the invention whereby these objects are attained will clearly appear from the following description in connection with the drawings which represent a frog, in which the invention is embodied.

In the said drawings, 1 denotes the base of the frog; 2, the wear-plate. These two parts do not materially differ from those of wellknown frogs (or crossings) of the same class, except in certain details required by my present invention, which I now proceed to describe.

The top of the base or casting 1 is formed with a depression 3, preferably of the form in cross-section shown in Fig. 2-that is, with a midway longitudinal groove 4and the bottom of the wear-plate, which is usually rectangular in plan, is made of shape to correspond with the contour of said depression, as shown, having a downwardly-extending rib 5, that is entered into the groove 4, as shown. I provide in saidbase oblique recesses 6, four in this instance, occupying corners of a rectangle, as seen in Fig. 1. These recesses are open at their upper ends, and the upper wall 7 of each is at an angle of about forty-five degrees, as seen in Figs. 2 and 3. In line laterally with said recesses, respectively, is a concavity 8 in the top of the base, the lower part of which concavity communicates with the recess 6. The part of the sides oredges of the wear-plate that comes opposite tosaid recesses, respectively, when said wear-plate is in place is formed with a recess 9 and also a projection or shoulder 10, whose face is parallel or thereabout with the oblique wall 7 of the recess 6 in the base of the structure, as seen in Figs. 2 and 3. The transverse width of the concavities 8 is less than the like width of the recesses 6, as seen in Fig. 4. When the wear-plate is in place, as in Figs. 2 and 3, as shown, the side of the concavity 8 and the side of the wear-plate form an opening leading into the upper portion of the recess 6. As will be observed, the recesses 6 extend below the concavities 8.

In each of the recesses 6 are inserted two steelplates ll, of Z shape in cross-section, as-

seen in Fig. 4, the upper limbs of which plates are against the walls 7 of said recesses, respectively, and whose lower limbs are embedded (preferably by being cast therewith) in the body of the base 1, for a purpose hereinafter appearing.

In assembling the parts preparatory to securing the wear-plate in position I drop into each recess 6 a nut 12 to occupy the position shown in Fig. 3. I then place the wear-plate 2 in proper position over the top of the base lthat is, over the depressed portion of the latter and with the rib 5 extending into the groove 4 of said portion, leavinga space between the bottom of said plate and the top of the base, the wear-plate being temporarily supported in such position by any suitable means, such as by some putty between it and the base at certain points. I now by means of a bent piece of wire or otherwise bring up the nuts 12 from the position of Fig. 3 to that of Figs. 2 and 4 with the part of the upper side of the nuts adjacent to the opposite margins thereof in close proximity to the under side of the upper limbs of the Z-plates 11.

Bolts 13 are then inserted in the nuts 12 through the concavities 8, and said bolts are screwed down through said nuts until their inner ends, respectively, contact with the,shoul der of the wear-plate, and the nut is therebeing in the inclined position,

by forced up against the upper limbs of the Z-plates 11, as seen in Figs. 2 and 4. Finally, the concavities 8 and the space between the wear-plate and base are filled with suitable metal, such as spelter, which is melted and poured into said concavities 8 and said space between the wear-plate and base, all as shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

To prevent the molten spelter metal from escaping from the space between the wearplate and the base into the recesses 6, below the nuts 12, the edges of said space would ordinarily be filled with putty; but any of the metal accidentally passing into the recesses is permitted to escape through exit-openings 14, which I usually provide in the bottom of said recess.

The purpose of the Z-plates 11 is to relieve the strain upon the part of the base 1 above the recesses 6 by, so to say, transferring the strain deep down into the base,where the lower limbs of said Z-plates are embedded in said base. These plates may, however, sometimes be dispensed with, in which case the nuts 12 would bear directly against the upper walls of the recesses 6.

I would usually make the bolts 13 with sockets 15, whose walls are hexagonal or squared, to receive a suitable key for conveniently turning the bolts. The bolts 18, bearing against the shoulders 10 of thewear-plate, and the nuts 12 against the upper wall 7 of the recesses 6 (or against the Z-plates when the latter are employed) maintain the wearplate firmly in position, and the bolts and nuts as shown, this restraining force being at right angles or thereabout to any movement tending to take place of the wear-plate, and the bolts being in compression-that is, without any tendency to elongation no change can take place from any deformation of the material.

To remove the wear-plate in case it shall be necessary to substitute a new one therefor, the comparatively soft spelter metal occupying the space above the nuts 12 is first chipped out and the bolts 13 removed, whereupon the nuts 12 will be dropped into the lower portion of the recesses 6, thus freeing the wear-plate, which may then be removed and a new one inserted by reversing the operation just described. I

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. In a railway frog or crossing, the combination of the base, the hard-metal wear-plate seated in a depression in said base, together with the bolts in compression securing said wear-plate and base together, substantially as set forth.

2. In a railway frog or crossing, the combination of the base, the wear-plate seated in a depression in said base, the nut engaging said base, and the bolt extending through said nut and abutting against said wear-plate, substantially as set forth.

3. In a railway frog or crossing, the combination of the base, having the recesses therein, the wear-plate seated in a depression in said base, and having the shoulders adjacent said recesses respectively, the nuts engaging the upper walls of said recesses, and the bolts extending through said nuts and abutting against said shoulders of the wear-plate, substantially as set forth.

4:. In a railway frog or crossing, the combination of the base, having the recesses therein with the inclined upper walls, the wear-plate having the inclined shoulders adjacent said recesses respectively, the nuts engaging the said inclined upper walls of said recesses, and the bolts extending through said nuts and abutting against the said shoulders of the wear-plate, substantially as set forth.

5. In a railway frog or crossing, the combination of the base, having the depression therein, the wear-plate seated in said depression, said base having also the undercut recesses with the inclined upper walls, the nuts engaging the upper walls of said recesses respectively, the bolts extending through said nuts and whose lower ends abut against said wearplate, substantially as set forth.

6. In a railway frog or crossing, the combination of the base, having the depression therein, the wear-plate seated therein, said base having also the recesses, the nuts engaging the upper walls of said recesses respectively, the bolts extending through said nuts and whose lower ends abut against said wear-plate, there being concavities between said wear-plate and base above said bolts and through which accessmay be had thereto, substantially as set forth.

7 In a railway frog or crossing, the combination of the base, the wear-plate seated in a depression of said base, said base having also the recesses adjacent said depression, the inset plates whose upper limbs constitute the upper walls of said recesses and whose lower limbs are embedded in the body of the base, the nuts engaging the under surfaces of the upper limbs of said inset plates, and the bolts through said nuts whose lower ends abut against the said wear-plate, substantially as set forth.

8. In a railway frog or crossing, the combination of the base, the wear-plate seated in a depression of said base, said base having also the recesses with inclined upper walls adjacent said depression, the inset Z-shape plates whose upper limbs constitute the upper walls of said recesses and whose lower limbs are embedded deep in the body of said base, the

inclined shoulders of said Wear-plate adjacent I In testimony whereof I have hereunto afsaid recesses, the nuts engaging the under fixed my signature. surfaces of the upper limbs of said Z-plates,

and the bolts extending through said nuts and CHARLES ALDEN Whose lower ends abut against said inclined Witnesses: shoulders of said Wear-plate,substantially as ELI B. BETSON,

set forth. GILBERT S. VICKERY. 

